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tariqah's review against another edition
3.0
I was very pleased with my win from a giveaway after finishing this book. Compelling, humorous, and mysterious, how we all like it, my nose was kept into the pages. I applaud Hugh Greene for his first novel and hope to get a hold of the other series to the Dr. Power/Superintendent Lynch mystery. Hopefully, the ones after will be just as good as "The Darkening Sky".
yorkslass70's review against another edition
4.0
Having recently read a number of crime novels set in the icy wastes of Scandinavia it was nice to get back to good old Blighty in the summertime., though this is by no means a cosy murder mystery.
I was hooked right from the start and enjoyed the mix of police procedural and the more mystical aspects of the story and thought the relationship between the two main characters, Dr Power and Superintendent Lynch was very well written.
There are some wonderfully descriptive passages and the story is well paced throughout with some nice humour thrown and I really enjoyed the quirky pen and ink illustrations which interspersed the text.
Dr Power's obvious love of food was for me reminiscent of the great Inspector Montalbano from the books by Andrea Camilleri and this story was in itself a wonderful apetizer for the rest of the series. I will defintely be looking foward to reading more by this author and to learning more about Superintendent Lynch and Dr Power as their working partnership develops.
I was hooked right from the start and enjoyed the mix of police procedural and the more mystical aspects of the story and thought the relationship between the two main characters, Dr Power and Superintendent Lynch was very well written.
There are some wonderfully descriptive passages and the story is well paced throughout with some nice humour thrown and I really enjoyed the quirky pen and ink illustrations which interspersed the text.
Dr Power's obvious love of food was for me reminiscent of the great Inspector Montalbano from the books by Andrea Camilleri and this story was in itself a wonderful apetizer for the rest of the series. I will defintely be looking foward to reading more by this author and to learning more about Superintendent Lynch and Dr Power as their working partnership develops.
caomhin's review against another edition
5.0
This was quite a read. When a body turns up near the bottom of a psychiatrists garden the mystery starts, and it keeps going. Greene handles the reveal superbly and leaves you hanging until the end, it's simply done but that's all it needs. In fact much of the book is simply done - Greene brings a lot to the table in this with great details on psychiatry, forensics, medicine, society, cars, and countless other small details, yet they are delivered with ease and purpose. They aren't random embellishments, they aren't overdone, they just fit.
The author trusts you to understand the characters too. Sometimes pages of backstory for character development and layer upon layer of depth works, but that would distract greatly from the strengths of this book. We get little bursts of something to fill in gaps as and when needed, but as with the atmospheric details above they are delivered with purpose and relevance.
As for the strengths? For me, the dialogue wins it. Although not written as such at times the rhythm and pace feel more like a script, and part of that comes from the heavy use of dialogue. It's natural, even with the aforementioned details. It has wit without heavy punchlines. There are even self-aware bad jokes that made me smile. It takes confidence and skill to deliver some of the lines in this book but Greene hits the sweetspot perfectly and it brings some very enjoyable relief to really rather dark plot.
An enjoyable adventure, the only downside is as it's part of a series I'm going to have to keep my eyes open for more. Sign me up for more Power and Lynch.
I received a complimentary copy of this book through the Good Reads promotion.
The author trusts you to understand the characters too. Sometimes pages of backstory for character development and layer upon layer of depth works, but that would distract greatly from the strengths of this book. We get little bursts of something to fill in gaps as and when needed, but as with the atmospheric details above they are delivered with purpose and relevance.
As for the strengths? For me, the dialogue wins it. Although not written as such at times the rhythm and pace feel more like a script, and part of that comes from the heavy use of dialogue. It's natural, even with the aforementioned details. It has wit without heavy punchlines. There are even self-aware bad jokes that made me smile. It takes confidence and skill to deliver some of the lines in this book but Greene hits the sweetspot perfectly and it brings some very enjoyable relief to really rather dark plot.
An enjoyable adventure, the only downside is as it's part of a series I'm going to have to keep my eyes open for more. Sign me up for more Power and Lynch.
I received a complimentary copy of this book through the Good Reads promotion.
wendleness's review
3.0
I found this book via goodreads and was taken with both the summary and the cover. Since then i’ve entered about five or six goodreads giveaways for it–but it paid off, as i finally won one!
I was taken with the book and the story immediately. I work in the health service, so the hospital scenes and doctor/patient relationships really got me stuck into the story and this world. I took to Dr Power quickly, too. For a psychiatrist–for someone who can read people so well–and for one of the main characters in a crime-solving duo, he’s very laid back and almost timid. He’s not got anything near the ego you might expect, in fact he’s more unsure of himself than anything. And that’s rather endearing. Superintendent Lynch took a little longer for me to warm up to. As a copper and a religious man, the odds were against him, but overall these are only parts of his character, and often an interesting juxtaposition explored well in the book. Neither of these main characters is either what you’d expect or as simple as they may seem to be.
The ending wasn’t what I had suspected, which was good (i like to be surprised), but it did lack a little something. It felt a little too easily concluded after everything that had been put in. (I hate to say it, but i liked my own ending better.) The first chapter was such an excellent set up, it was so intriguing and posed so many questions. But then the end didn’t really tie back to that, or make any further reference to it, which i think was a shame. Even just a last paragraph, alluding to the fact that a Dr Allen or Dr Ashton had been trying to contact Power would have given me a wry grin and rounded the book off perfectly.
Overall, i enjoyed the book a lot. I loved the characters and although it had its faults, the plot was interesting enough. On the whole i think the book suffered with trying to introduce its characters and build on their new relationships, as well as carry the story. I’m hoping that with Power and Lynch’s friendship and respect for each other established, the sequels can fully explore more interesting plots while pulling this new duo along for the ride. I do plan on reading them, so i’ll find out soon!
A longer review can be read at my book blog: Marvel at Words
I was taken with the book and the story immediately. I work in the health service, so the hospital scenes and doctor/patient relationships really got me stuck into the story and this world. I took to Dr Power quickly, too. For a psychiatrist–for someone who can read people so well–and for one of the main characters in a crime-solving duo, he’s very laid back and almost timid. He’s not got anything near the ego you might expect, in fact he’s more unsure of himself than anything. And that’s rather endearing. Superintendent Lynch took a little longer for me to warm up to. As a copper and a religious man, the odds were against him, but overall these are only parts of his character, and often an interesting juxtaposition explored well in the book. Neither of these main characters is either what you’d expect or as simple as they may seem to be.
The ending wasn’t what I had suspected, which was good (i like to be surprised), but it did lack a little something. It felt a little too easily concluded after everything that had been put in. (I hate to say it, but i liked my own ending better.) The first chapter was such an excellent set up, it was so intriguing and posed so many questions. But then the end didn’t really tie back to that, or make any further reference to it, which i think was a shame. Even just a last paragraph, alluding to the fact that a Dr Allen or Dr Ashton had been trying to contact Power would have given me a wry grin and rounded the book off perfectly.
Overall, i enjoyed the book a lot. I loved the characters and although it had its faults, the plot was interesting enough. On the whole i think the book suffered with trying to introduce its characters and build on their new relationships, as well as carry the story. I’m hoping that with Power and Lynch’s friendship and respect for each other established, the sequels can fully explore more interesting plots while pulling this new duo along for the ride. I do plan on reading them, so i’ll find out soon!
A longer review can be read at my book blog: Marvel at Words
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